Atlatl

[Kegan]

Just finished up my first working atlatl last night- a fun little day project. Gotta say, I can see why it took so long for the bow to come about- it is simple to make and the dart was easier to straighten. It was fun.

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[Ryano]

cool

[jamie]

kegan when we do our primitive weekend a fella from mass shows up witha bunch of atlatls and darts. everybody stops what they are doing and starts throwing its a lot of fun. nice job

[Dane]

I was there at Jamie's event, and it was a gas! In fact, I just put a coat of finish on my atlatl, with the tip of a cow horn at the business end (since I don't know atlatl nomenclature). I'll post some pics when I have the handle wrap on it. I may put a counterweight stone on it, too, not sure yet.

Dane

[Hillbilly]

Cool. Just be careful, throwing darts is addictive.

[Dane]

Is addictive indeed.

Here it is. A bit more work has to be done, but it is almost there. Elm handle and cow horn.

Dane

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[duffontap]

Nice work guys.  I'll have to try that.

       J. D.

[Dane]

Thanks, JD. You should put one together. I most like the idea of getting a bit closer to our very ancient ancestors. Prehistoric technology is pretty addictive.

[AndrewS]

Oh I like these stuff!

I have made several atlatls and darts. But I haven't found the secret to hit anything

[mullet]

   Oh they are fun.Andrew,the secret,,,,practice A while back we tried a little experiment.We made cane darts with turkey feathers and real stone artifacts for points.They were rough,Kirk serrated pnts about 5" long.Out of 5 people,nobody could throw the spear more than 45 yds by hand.But with the atlatl we were chunking it out as far as 120 yds.It impressed everybody and you wouldn't believe how much the dart was bending before it left the hook.

[Dane]

The power you get is so impressive. I don't know if you can chronograph darts, but I read recently you can get the darts going over 100 miles per hour. They hunted wooly mammoths and other big game with these, after all. An atlatl is so much easier to build than a bow, too. And, if you found yourself in a survival situation, this weapon would be very viable.

[M-P]

Hey, I made one of these things , too, and a couple of darts to go with.  I'm far from good at using the darn things, but with practice I've gone from being lucky if the dart went the right direction, to being able to hit a 6" target at 10 yards.  Like I said, not impressive, but a step in the right direction.    Ron